Today, I went to Pitshanger Park in Ealing to do my usual parkrun. This is the one I normally go to if we don’t have anything else planned. The course is supposed to be 2k, but today it was just a bit shorter, about 1.92k. While I was running, I noticed there was a girl in front of me, and I decided to try and overtake her. When I moved onto the grass to pass, she did the same, trying to block me. It felt a bit frustrating, but I kept pushing forward.

In the end, I managed to finish ahead of her by 8 seconds. My final time was 8:01, which is the same as my personal best (PB). I think if she hadn’t tried to block me, I might have beaten my PB today, or at least come closer to my goal. My target was to finish under 8 minutes, and I was just 2 seconds away. My pace was 4 minutes and 10 seconds per kilometre, which I’m happy with, but I know I could have done even better.

Today, I competed in the North West London League at Fryent Park. I gave it my all and managed to finish in 15th place out of 51 girls, which I’m proud of, especially since I was one of the youngest participants. Most of the girls racing were in Year 5 or Year 6, while I’m still in Year 4. This made me feel even more accomplished, knowing I was keeping up with older, more experienced runners.

The race was supposed to be 2 kilometers, but my watch recorded a distance of 1.74 kilometers. The course was entirely on grass, which made it more challenging, as I had to stay steady on the uneven terrain. I completed the race in 7 minutes and 18 seconds, with a pace of 4:12 per kilometer. I felt strong, and I knew I was pushing myself to do my best.

On the 18th of October, we had our school’s House Cross Country race, and I was really excited about it. Last year, I finished 4th in this event, but this time, I was determined to take the win. I was already riding a wave of confidence after winning the Under 11 District League Cross Country at Fleetville, and I had my sights set on another victory.

The course was around the school grounds, which I guessed was about 1km. My plan was to start strong, get ahead quickly, and build up my pace as the race progressed. I have really good stamina from running 5K ParkRuns regularly, and I love long-distance running. I’m not much of a sprinter, so it usually takes me a bit of time to find my rhythm.

Today was my second cross country race as part of the Under 11 District League, and this time it was held at Fleetville School. Six girls from my school across Years 4, 5, and 6 were selected to compete, with the top four finishers earning points for our school. With over 70 girls from various schools participating, I knew it was going to be a challenging race, but I was determined to win. After finishing 2nd in my last race, I was even more motivated to take the top spot this time and help my school climb the league rankings.

The race was set to be three and a bit laps around the grassy fields of the school. Before the race, I ran a few warm-up laps with a friend from school, just to loosen up. When it was finally time to race, I put on my spikes, focused, and got ready to give it my all. The starting formation was a bit tricky; each school had six runners, but only two were allowed to start at the front. The next pair lined up behind them, followed by the last two runners at the back. Since I was part of the final trio for my school, I started near the back, which felt like a bit of a disadvantage. But I refused to let that hold me back. I was determined to make up ground as soon as the race started.